HC Deb 02 June 1997 vol 295 cc28-9W
Mr. Goggins

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what plans he has to use lottery funds to help end street homelessness in Britain by 2000. [1641]

Mr. Banks

The National Lottery Charities Board has already announced 446 grants with a total value of £66 million for projects to assist homeless people. Its fifth grant programme, targeted at improving people's living environment, specifically aims to tackle homelessness and its effects. The Government will also build on the Rough Sleepers Initiative, providing accommodation, outreach work and resettlement support, to ensure that there is no need for people to sleep rough.

Mr. Vaz

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage (1) what proportion of proceeds from the national lottery have gone to projects in the east midlands; and what plans he has to ensure additional national lottery proceeds are devoted to projects in the east midlands; [1460]

(2) what assessment he has made of the imbalance of allocation of national lottery funds between different regions; what steps he has taken to address imbalances of allocation; and if he will make a statement. [1459]

Mr. Banks

To date, 4 per cent. of the £3.373 billion awarded by National Lottery distributing bodies has been for projects in the East Midlands. It is clear that some areas of the country have benefited a great deal more from the Lottery than others. We will be looking at the reasons for this as part of our overall review of Lottery distribution and considering what changes might be made as a result.

Mr. Barnes

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will review the operation of commercial organisations offering services claiming to help people improve their chances of winning national lottery prizes; and if he will make a statement. [1435]

Mr. Banks

The selection of the winning numbers in the National Lottery is a random process and any claim that a commercial product will improve the chances of winning must therefore be false. There are products available which aim to assist players in choosing their numbers randomly. It is a matter for players to decide whether or not they wish to purchase such products. Anyone who felt they had been misled by such a product would have recourse to the courts or local trading standards officers.

Mr. Stunell

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if the proposed review of national lottery funding will include increased flexibility for grant applications for village halls within metropolitan areas. [1210]

Mr. Chris Smith

National Lottery distributing bodies are able to consider bids for improvements to, or the creation of, village halls or community facilities in any part of the United Kingdom. The distributors have produced a joint publication, 'Village and Community Halls-Guidance from the National Lottery distributing bodies', which offers advice to potential applicants. We will consider the need for greater flexibility over applications as part of our review of all aspects of the Lottery distribution system.